The 10 best pro-gay Russia Olympic parodies so far
As the Olympic games get underway in Russia, the internet has lined up to mock, laugh at and gently poke Vladimir Putin’s regime.
We take a look at the ten of the best pro-gay parodies so far.
10: Mother Russia (LeanAndMean)
This amazing YouTube musical lampshades the Russian army, with some of the campest dance moves you’ll ever see.
9: Gay Mountain (Channel 4)
Channel 4 also went down the musical route with ‘Gay Mountain’, a disco karaoke interpretation of the Russian national anthem, which will leave you in no doubt about how totally heterosexual Sochi is.
8: The Fabulous Gay Adventures of Vladimir Putin (Somegreybloke)
YouTube comedy animator Somegreybloke’s Olympic offering shows a distracted Putin, whose mind wanders off to a land of unicorns and gay bars, as an advisor tries to persuade him to use gay people as scapegoats in their dictatorial campaign.
7: Hello My Name is Vladimir (BrewDog)
Last week Aberdeenshire-based BrewDog launched their new ‘Hello My Name is Vladimir’ beer, styled after the Russian leader. As the label makes clear, it is ‘not for gays’.
6: Russia Applauds America (The Onion)
This parody Russian newscast from The Onion takes aim at the US, for “its continued oppressive treatment of its own homosexual athletes”, with Putin overjoyed at the homophobia commonplace in football, baseball and basketball.
5: #LoveAlwaysWins (All Out)
All Out went for a more heartwarming video, showing a lesbian figure skater trying to celebrate with her girlfriend after winning a gold medal. We may have teared up a little.
4. Come to Sochi (Half Giraffe)
Comedy channel Half Giraffe have a public service announcement from Vladimir Putin, who’s got just a few changes to make to the Olympics in line with the anti-gay laws. It’s bad news for fans of the four-man bob-sleigh.
3: Russian Broadway Shut Down (John Walton West)
Our bronze medallist is this musical number from John Walton West, which features cameos from just about every Broadway star, from Jonathan Groff to Laura Osnes, and even the Avenue Q puppets. It imagines a Russian Broadway shut down under the anti-gay laws, and has everything from lesbian cosmonauts to gay Olympic lovers.
2: Principle 6 Doodle (Google)
Coming in second is Google’s dignified response to events in Russia, proudly displaying on their English and Russian homepages a pride flag and a quote from the Olympic charter, which says “Every individual must have the possibility of practicing sport, without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit”.
1: Gay Luge (CIDI)
Scooping the gold is this brilliant tribute to Luge, from the Canadian Institute of Diversity and Inclusion. As it says, the games have always been a little gay.
